More than two weeks ago, Libya’s powerful Misrata militia was gathering forces outside the city of Sirte for what its fighters said would soon be an offensive to eject a few hundred Islamic State militants from late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi’s hometown.

With Saudi Arabia’s bombing campaign in its third day, the United Nations on Saturday evacuated its remaining personnel from Yemen’s capital, dashing whatever hopes remained that the fighting would be suspended and U.N.-sponsored peace talks resumed.

In a major setback for Syrian President Bashar Assad, al Qaida’s affiliate in Syria and forces from four other Islamist groups captured the city of Idlib on Saturday, the second provincial capital to fall to Islamist extremists.

After two days of Saudi airstrikes and a barrage of anti-aircraft fire by Houthi rebels, Yemen’s former president reappeared Friday in Sanaa to call for a cease-fire and a return to United Nations negotiations.

U.S. military and intelligence agencies are doing background checks on the first 400 Syrians to be trained to combat Islamic State forces in their country, with a target date set as early as September for them to join the war, the Pentagon said Friday.

President Barack Obama probably has no choice but to back a Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen, where Iranian-backed Houthi rebels control the capital and were driving on the country’s largest seaport.